From: "Tim Wohlforth" <
tim@timwohlforth.com>
>I suggested the hard-boiled (I
> originally said noir) post 9/11 topic because I
thought it was
> interesting why people like dark fiction in dark
times. You'd think they
> would choose light escapism. But we saw the same
phenomenon after
> W.W.II. That is both fluff escapist musicals and
comedy (especially
> during war) and then of course the classic noirs.
Worth discussing.
I'm not following your line of thinking, here, Tim. Let me
see if I can put my finger on where I think it breaks
down:
During crisis (WW II): mostly escapist fluff and comedies
Post WW II: more escapist fluff and comedies, and a lot more
noir.
Today:
During crisis (War on Terror): mostly escapist fluff (reality
TV, I suppose?) and comedies. Post crisis: ok, wait, I don't
think we've reached a "post crisis" stage yet though, have
we? Unless you equate President Bush's carrier-borne Top Gun
photo-op declaration of a cessation of "major military
action" in Iraq the end of the War on Terror the way that
Hiroshima and Nagasaki signaled the end of World War II?
Surely that can't be the case. The combat-related deaths of
some 1,700 American troops (so far) and thousands of Iraqi
citizens give the lie to that sort of thinking.
So I'm curious as to whether I got your parallel right? I'm
likely skipping Bouchercon this year (can't justify the
expense for only being able to go over the weekend, as my day
gig makes it impossible to take off any time right before
Labor Day weekend, which genius came up with this schedule?
What ever happened to good old October?), so I thought I'd
ask this question here. Is this what you're saying? Surely we
in the States are not in a
"post-war, noir-hungry" state of mind?
Brian Thornton
RARA-AVIS home page: http://www.miskatonic.org/rara-avis/
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